The short answer
Since June 11, 2025, whoever hires the broker pays the broker. If the broker works for the landlord, including a broker who posted the listing, the landlord pays. You pay only if you chose to hire your own broker to find you an apartment. That is the core of New York City’s Fairness in Apartment Rental Expenses (FARE) Act, Local Law 119 of 2024.
At a glance
- In effect since
- June 11, 2025
- Landlord’s or listing agent fee to tenant
- Banned
- Fee to a broker you hired yourself
- Allowed
- Background/credit check fee
- $20 max
- or actual cost, if lower
How the checker decides
The decision tree above follows the questions DCWP, the city agency that enforces the law, uses in its FAQ:
- Timing. Fees paid before June 11, 2025 are generally outside the law. If you signed earlier but hadn’t paid yet, DCWP said the ban still applies, with a caveat that earlier contractual obligations may not be covered depending on the circumstances.
- Who the broker represents. A landlord’s agent represents the landlord. A listing agent publishes listings with the landlord’s permission. The law presumes an agent who posts a listing is authorized by the landlord.
- Whether hiring was forced. Nobody can make hiring a broker, or a dual agent who works for both sides, a condition of renting an apartment.
| Who pays the broker | |
|---|---|
| You answered a listing the broker posted | Landlord |
| The landlord or management sent you to the broker | Landlord |
| Broker said you must sign with them to see the unit | Not allowed: you shouldn’t pay |
| You hired a broker to search for you, by choice | You, per your agreement |
| Fee paid before June 11, 2025 | Generally not covered |
Worked example
You rent a $3,500-a-month apartment from a listing posted by a broker. The broker asks for 15% of a year’s rent: $3,500 × 12 × 15% = $6,300. That equals 1.8 months of rent, or $525 a month extra over a 12-month lease. Because the broker posted the listing, the law presumes they are the landlord’s agent, so the landlord should pay. If you paid it anyway, $6,300 is the amount you would ask DCWP or a court to return.
Fees that must be disclosed
The FARE Act also has disclosure rules. Every listing must clearly show all fees you would have to pay to rent the apartment. Before you sign a lease, the landlord or its agent must give you an itemized written list of every fee you must pay to the landlord or anyone the landlord directs, with a description of each. You sign it, they keep it for three years, and you get a copy. Background and credit check fees are still allowed, but New York law caps them at the actual cost or $20, whichever is less. The landlord must give you a copy of the check and the receipt from the company that ran it, and must waive the fee if you provide a check done in the past 30 days.
What to do next
Read the full explainer on who pays the broker fee now, or the step-by-step broker fee decision tree. Then total up what you actually need at signing with the NYC move-in cost calculator, and check any screening fee with the application fee checker.